Geneva tops St. Charles North
While some might have thought a third straight regional championship was a forgone conclusion, Geneva coach Gina Nolan knew better.
So what if Geneva entered Thursday’s Class 4A St. Charles East regional championship after scoring 82 points the previous night? Or with an 18-point victory in their last matchup with St. Charles North?
The North Stars did indeed throw the Vikings a scare, at least until Geneva’s second straight late knockout punch. A night after hitting St. Charles East with a 23-0 run in what had been a 6-point game, the Vikings closed Thursday’s regional final on a 22-4 romp for a 52-31 victory.
Geneva (23-6) will play Rockton Hononegah, a 71-68 winner over Rockford Auburn, in the Class 4A Jacobs sectional semifinals at 8:10 p.m. Tuesday.
“We knew it was going to be a dogfight,” Nolan said. “They are a real nice team and this time of year if you can’t get fired up to play don’t come. We knew they would be fired up to play. Luckily we finally got some shots to fall and got our fastbreak game going and that seemed to be the difference down the stretch.
“Maybe on paper people thought we were the best team but that’s never easy. You have to show up and play. Three (regionals) in a row, four in seven, not too shabby.”
After the North Stars (15-15) pulled within 30-27 late in the third quarter, the Vikings ratcheted up their defense and rebounding. Junior Ashley Santos had 2 of the team’s 16 steals and along with Brooke Binette and Katelyn Allen won the rebounding battle.
“It’s just one of those things when you want the ball and you want to win that badly it just comes from that,” Santos described in how she fights taller opponents for rebounds.
After the North Stars beat the Vikings early this season, Geneva answered with a 51-33 victory last month. North Stars coach Colleen Brennan had a simple message for her team after that loss, to “remember this feeling.”
St. Charles North came out Thursday like it remembered. Trailing 12-9 after the first quarter, the North Stars clawed to a 20-18 lead on Sydney Russell’s 3 with 3:30 left in the second quarter.
Geneva scored the next 8 points — 4 points coming from Santos — and led 26-22 at halftime. The North Stars again tried to inch their way closer in the third quarter. A putback basket by Amanda Ciran and Russell’s jumper drew the North Stars within 30-27.
Binette nailed a long baseline jumper. Katelyn Allen scored a lay-in set up by Sammy Scofield’s steal and assist. Scofield assisted Santos before Kate Booe’s bucket ended the third quarter with Geneva up 36-29.
That field goal would be the North Stars’ last of the night. They missed all 13 attempts in the fourth quarter to go 3 for 26 in the second half after a solid 9 for 19 effort in the first half.
“The second half when you don’t put the ball in the orange hoop things don’t go in your direction,” Brennan said. “The swing of that game goes very quick. Geneva is a smart, savvy, experienced team.”
Geneva outscored St. Charles North 16-2 in the fourth quarter. Kat Yelle got it started with a stickback, Santos scored for a 40-29 lead and then the Vikings got their fastbreak going. Scofield scored twice, and after an Allen jumper, it was Scofield’s turn to assist Yelle on two layups.
“We started getting steals, running the court and fastbreaking,” Scofield said. “That’s what we are used to doing. It was really slow the first three quarters.”
Scofield had her left ankle iced again after the game after she hurt it Wednesday night. The injury didn’t stop her from scoring 10 points, dishing 5 assists and nabbing 4 steals.
“It’s fine, it’s a little sore but we have four days off,” Scofield said. “I did the best I could. It didn’t slow me up that much. Of course it is going to be sore later today.”
Santos led Geneva’s balanced scoring with 13 points and Yelle had 12. Geneva outrebounded the North Stars 35-27 with a team effort behind Binette’s 10, 8 from Allen and Santos with 7.
“It was really tough, they had a lot of size and we had to get around them and box out,’ Binette said.
Seniors Sydney Russell and Tess Fischer paced the North Stars with 8 and 7 points, respectively. Russell also had 4 steals and 5 rebounds.
“There was a lid on our basket, it just seemed like it wasn’t going in,” Brennan said. “It didn’t finish the way I wanted it to but I’m very proud of my girls tonight and this season.”